After Hart, another 2018 WJC acquitted player inches closer to NHL comeback

With Carter Hart officially back in the NHL system, the door may finally be cracking open for the other four players acquitted in the 2018 World Junior case. While Hart’s signing with the Vegas Golden Knights sent shockwaves through the hockey world, it also signalled a shift, one that could soon put Alex Formenton’s name back in circulation after nearly two years in limbo.

Formenton, along with Hart, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, and Cal Foote, faced charges stemming from a June 2018 incident at a London, Ontario, hotel following a Hockey Canada gala. McLeod also faced an additional charge of being a party to the offence. In July, Justice Maria Carroccia acquitted all five players. After some back and forth between the NHL and the NHLPA, it was confirmed that the group will be eligible to sign contracts starting October 15 and can return to NHL action on December 1.

On Thursday, Hart signed a professional tryout contract with the Vegas Golden Knights.

The signing got a lot of people talking, but it also allows the other four players a better chance at getting a deal of their own. And according to insider Elliotte Friedman, Alex Formenton may be the closest to get the next contract in the NHL.

“I do think there’s some interest, I just don’t know if it’s gonna happen as quickly, but I do think there’s been some teams that have talked about the possibility,” Friedman explained on the FAN Hockey Show.

However, any interested suitor would have to deal with the Ottawa Senators. Despite his involvement in the 2018 World Juniors investigation and the fact he hasn’t played an NHL game since, the Senators cannot simply remove him from their reserve list. Thanks to the rules surrounding qualified restricted free agents, Formenton remains tied to Ottawa until he’s either traded or becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2027.

Whether or not any team takes that leap remains to be seen, but the landscape is shifting quickly. Hart’s return has broken the silence around the 2018 group, and Formenton’s name is suddenly back in NHL conversations. Still, as long as he remains on Ottawa’s reserve list, his future will depend on whether the Senators, or another team, are willing to take the public and organizational risk that comes with it.

I wonder which teams are interested in Formenton...